The Most Wonderful Time
by Havok452
Summary: Cassandra experiences Christmas time. AU post-WarGames, where Steph never died but went with Cass to Bludhaven. light Cass/Steph fluff femslash.


It was October when they moved to Bludhaven, and as soon as November hit, Steph started making things. Recovering from severe injuries as Steph was, Cassandra would hardly let her out of the house unsupervised at all, let alone as Spoiler. This gave Steph an alarming amount of free time to fill while Cass was sleeping or out fighting crime. And so, arguing that she was preparing for Christmas, she made things. She crafted two large stockings (made half from felt she had purchased and half from old, torn costumes), took up papermache purely to create ornaments (which she then also quickly gave up on), and even doodled dozens of anatomically incorrect reindeer and Santas to stick up on any walls or windows that Steph deemed appropriate.

(She had tried to draw Batman wearing a Santa-hat, but Cass gave her a weird look when she glanced over Steph's shoulder at the picture. "What's wrong with his face?" Cass asked. "He's smiling," Steph said. Cass blinked at her. "He has Christmas Spirit!" Steph insisted. Cassandra shook her head and walked away.)

Steph had even taken up baking. She only knew how to make cookies, really, in lumpy shapes that she insisted were pine trees and Christmas stars and gingerbread men. ("If they are gingerbread men, why don't they taste like ginger? Or bread?" Cass asked.)

Cassandra didn't comment on any of it unless prompted; a nod of affirmation when Steph voiced an idea, a short "It looks nice." when Steph asked her opinion on any decoration, or a hesitant "No." when Steph asked "Do these ones taste any less like burned toast?".

When Cassandra awoke one afternoon, there was an average sized Christmas tree in the living room. Steph was standing in front of it, gazing at it proudly.

"What..." Cass gestured at the tree. "What's going on?" That wasn't really what she meant to ask, but it seemed to sum up a lot of her questions into one. Like how, and why, and when.

Steph bounced up to her. "It's a Christmas tree!"

"I know. How did it get in here?"

"I dragged it in... Don't worry, I'll clean up all those pine needles later." Steph bounced back over to gaze up at the tree. "But you've got to help me decorate it."

"I..." Cassandra wanted to question Steph further about where the tree had come from, how she had acquired it and how she had brought it here, and possibly then chastised Steph for exerting herself too much in the entire process, but Steph's enthusiasm about the tree seemed to overrule any other conversation.

"Come on," said Steph, "it'll be fun! A bonding experience! I even got this box of shiny, shiny ornaments as part of the deal when I got the tree."

Cassandra gave up on worrying about the details for the moment and focused instead on Steph's current train of conversation. She gave the tree an uncertain look. "I'm not sure how."

"What, you've never decorated a Christmas tree before?" Steph asked. Cassandra shook her head no. Steph glanced around the Christmasized room, seeing nothing added that she herself hadn't done. "You've never done stuff like this?" Cassandra shook her head again. "Haven't you ever, you know, done Christmas?" She was slightly surprised. Not shocked or horrified or disbelieving, but that mild surprise you feel when faced with a fact that you'd never really thought about, but once you did it made a lot of sense and you felt a bit silly for being surprised in the first place.

"No." Cass confirmed. She had experienced Christmas; in the streets, inside stores, on TV, in peoples' eyes and in their movements. She simply had never really had the opportunity or inclination, until now, to join in.

"Um..." Steph shifted, almost hesitant. "Do you want to?" Her eyes begged for an affirmative response.

Cass shrugged. She looked at the tree and then back at Steph, who these days seemed to embody all hope and enthusiasm and happiness. It was a good thing to have, Cassandra decided. She smiled and replied, "Sure."

They spent the evening decorating the tree. Cassandra worried that she should be out, doing her job and keeping people safe, but when Steph looked at her with that grin that hadn't faded in hours or moved with that bounce in her step that said everything was right with the world, it made her want to forget about the rest of the world out there and just stay and keep Steph happy. (Stephanie's joy was like a living thing baring her exit. It was big and smiley and nudged her back into Steph's presence every time she stepped away.)

All the same, Cassandra did eventually go out that night to do her duty. Steph promised there would be fresh cookies waiting for her when she came back, and Cass wasn't sure why that made her want to stay even more. (She told herself it was because she should make sure Steph didn't set anything on fire, but that didn't explain away the warm, tingly feeling inside her chest. She then decided that sensation could be blamed on the eggnog Steph had made her try.)

Cassandra came home just before the sun had begun rising after an uneventful night of patrolling. Steph was asleep on the couch, waiting for her. Cass came over, gently brushed a hand over Steph's shoulder without waking her as if to say "I'm back, everything's okay." and then went to locate a blanket to cover the girl with. Once that was accomplished, she sat down on the floor, leaning back against the couch and looked up at the sparkling tree. The room was warm and smelled like sweet baked goods rather than burned toast, and Steph radiated contentment behind her. Christmas was a good time, Cassandra decided.

She fell asleep there, her back against the couch and her face resting against Steph's blanket-covered knee.

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Christmas finally arrived and Steph made them sit in front of the tree to exchange gifts. ("Tradition," Steph claimed.)

Cassandra wasn't sure what people typically gave each other as Christmas gifts. She'd asked Alfred what young women liked to receive, and he had decided that expensive jewelry (which he then also helped pay for) was usually a good choice. Thus, Cassandra's badly wrapped gifts for Steph consisted of an expensive bracelet, a 'Gotham: Home of the Bat' t-shirt Cass had purchased, and a batarang (with a note attached that said "Don't tell Batman," in Barbara's handwriting). Steph squealed, thanked Cass repeatedly, and hugged her a lot.

Steph's gifts on the other hand were, of course, chosen and acquired without outside assistance. She gave Cass a few movies, audiobooks, and a children's book which she said had been her favourite when she was younger and she promised to teach Cass how to read it. Steph expressed concern that her gifts were probably not as good as Cass's, but Cass disagreed, saying that Steph's were quite obviously more skillfully wrapped, which made Steph smile.

Convinced by Steph that even evil-doers had better things to do on Christmas than cause trouble, Cassandra agreed to stay in that night and watch movies with Steph. They curled up on the couch under a blanket, and when Steph cuddled up against her ("You're warm," Steph stated as reason.) Cass didn't object, just wrapped her arm around Steph's shoulders.

After one movie, Cass got up to use the bathroom. When she came back, Steph was standing, waiting for her.

"There's one more Christmas-y thing you should experience, you know," Steph said.

Cassandra wondered if this might involve more eggnog, or perhaps snow. "Oh?" Or perhaps both. Part of her hoped for both.

Steph pulled something green and leafy out of her pocket and looked down at it, watching her own fingers toy with it as she spoke. "You know about mistletoe, right?" She held it above her head, looking at Cass with half a smile and vulnerable eyes.

Cassandra smiled and looked up at the crumpled piece of greenery in Steph's hand. She stepped forward captured Steph's lips in a kiss.

"Yes. I know lots of things."

Christmas was a very good time, Cassandra decided.


End file.
